Finishing races is important, but racing is more important. —Dale Earnhardt.

Such is the NASCAR spirit. But who has the time when Cup Series drivers are nearing the Playoffs with just six races separating them from the judgment day? The drivers are feeling the rush of blood inside their veins, and so are the fans. With two of their drivers below the playoff cut line, the situation remains quite uncertain for Hendrick Motorsports.

The King of road courses on his way to salvage the situation

Things did not look this tight last year as the #9 Chevrolet driver was the NASCAR Cup Series Champion. But this year, after missing several races due to an injury and a penalty, Chase Elliott is sitting at a whopping 60 points below the cut line. Not only that, but he also needs to move up the Cup Series standings by 6 spots just to get to the 16th. Surprisingly, Elliott looked fairly calm and hopeful about this weekend’s race at the Pocono Raceway as he spoke to the reporters during the pre-race interview.

When asked if there is a strategy of seeking wins or points or a balance between the two for HMS, Chase gave a rather confident reply.

“We just have to go and do our jobs to the best of our ability and show up every weekend and make sure we are prepared – thinking about the right things, talking about the right things and making sure that I am honing in on every piece of my craft that I feel like I need to focus on that weekend, And that can vary from track to track. The road courses everybody likes to talk about that I was this really good road racer two or three years ago and now we’ve hadn’t won one in a couple years.”

The only predictable aspect of the NASCAR races, according to Elliott, is its unpredictability.

“The fun part of the position that I am in, and that our team is in, is we have the ability to change those narratives… Like I said, we just have to put the pieces together at the right time and extract our potential and we will be fine.”

Chase displayed a rather positive attitude as he looks forward to getting better every week and doing everything he can to fight for top-5s and fighting for wins.

23XI Racing co-owner places his bets on the unpredictable

Chase Elliott has his work cut out for him till the playoffs this season. He has not led many laps, and neither has he been able to win a single race after he came back from the suspension. In the last two races at Atlanta and New Hampshire, Chase could not secure even a top-10 finish.

In an episode of Actions Detrimental, Denny Hamlin made a prediction in favor of Elliott even though he did not feel “warm and fuzzy” while doing so. He urged all the Chase Elliott fans to reunite their wills for a single cause: Chase Elliott to make it to the playoffs. Adding to the mix, Hamlin believed that this won’t happen based on just points alone.

That being said, Chase has the highest average finish among all the full-time NASCAR drivers at 11.8 seconds so far, which is pretty solid. And for someone like Chase Elliott, who is known to be an expert in road courses, the race at Pocono might be just the place to prove himself. How long before Elliott salvages his current situation? Only time will tell.

Read more: Chase [Elliott] Has Failed” – NASCAR’s Favorite Driver Loses the Fans’ Preference as Insider Bashes His Questionable Performance